Gary Woodland, who couldn't muster a top-10 finish in his first 27 major championship appearances, takes a two-stroke lead into the weekend at Pebble Beach eyeing a US Open title that once seemed all but impossible.
The 35-year-old American, ranked 25th in the world, is a three-time winner on the US PGA Tour, but no one's ever been tempted to tag him with the "best-player-never-to-win-a-major" label.
He admitted it once rankled to be known only for his booming drives, and says it's improvements in his short game and his putting that have seen him contend at the PGA Championship the past two years and, now, on an iconic US Open course.
"It's nice to be putting the results up so people can change the narrative a little bit," he said. It was 0-27 top-10s in majors. The narrative is going to be a long hitter. It's nice to come out well and change that."
Woodland had six birdies without a bogey in a 65 to match the best US Open round ever shot at Pebble Beach, achieved first by Tiger Woods in 2000 and matched by England's Justin Rose on Thursday.
Woodland's nine-under par total was one stroke better than Woods posted on the way to his crushing 15-shot triumph in 2000.
It's rare company to be in, but Woodland hasn't arrived at this point entirely without warning.
He held the 36-hole lead in the 2018 PGA Championship at Bellerive before settling for a tie for sixth.
He was tied for eighth at the PGA Championship last month at Bethpage Black.
"Short game has come around," he said. I've always been a pretty good ball-striker, I've relied on my ball-striking my whole career, athletic ability.
"But the short game and putting has kind of held me back. PGA last year I made a lot of putts, especially early in the week. Obviously it was nice to finish the top 10 and get that monkey off the back."
He said he learned a lot at Bellerive, especially how to contend when his ball-striking wasn't at its best.
"I have other things that can pick me up," he said. "That's been a big confidence boost for me, knowing I don't have to be perfect I can still contend and have a chance to win."
Woodland made a steady climb up the leaderboard, teeing off on 10 and making birdies at 12 and 16.
A birdie at the first put him within a shot of the lead, and he matched it at the par-three fifth where he jarred a 15-footer.
At the par-five sixth he reached the green in two, and two-putted from 21 feet.
He kept his nerve on the toughest holes on the course - eight and nine, saving par from the greenside rough at the eighth before an unlikely closing birdie at the ninth where his tee shot was in a fairway divot.
"I didn't want to give a shot back," he said.
Woodland said his experience at last year's PGA Championship, when he played with eventual winner Brooks Koepka and with Woods on the weekend, would stand him in good stead as he tackled the weekend at Pebble Beach.
"You can't get caught up in what's going on around you," he said, adding that he had "never seen anything like" the hubbub that surrounds Woods during a round.
"I played in a basketball arena with 16,300 people right on top of you," he said of his college playing days. "There was nothing like that.
"You learn to slow your breathing. Adrenaline is a huge deal. You learn to stay within yourself and what you have to do to calm yourself down and stay within your game plan."
Planes grounded by coronavirus
British Airways: Cancels all direct flights to and from mainland China
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific: Cutting capacity to/from mainland China by 50 per cent from Jan. 30
Chicago-based United Airlines: Reducing flights to Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong
Ai Seoul: Suspended all flights to China
Finnair: Suspending flights to Nanjing and Beijing Daxing until the end of March
Indonesia's Lion Air: Suspending all flights to China from February
South Korea's Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air and Jin Air: Suspend all flights
RESULT
Valencia 3
Kevin Gameiro 21', 51'
Ferran Torres 67'
Atlanta 4
Josip Llicic 3' (P), 43' (P), 71', 82'
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Boulder shooting victims
• Denny Strong, 20
• Neven Stanisic, 23
• Rikki Olds, 25
• Tralona Bartkowiak, 49
• Suzanne Fountain, 59
• Teri Leiker, 51
• Eric Talley, 51
• Kevin Mahoney, 61
• Lynn Murray, 62
• Jody Waters, 65
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Rio de Janeiro from Dh7,000 return including taxes. Avianca fliles from Rio to Cusco via Lima from $399 (Dhxx) return including taxes.
The trip
From US$1,830 per deluxe cabin, twin share, for the one-night Spirit of the Water itinerary and US$4,630 per deluxe cabin for the Peruvian Highlands itinerary, inclusive of meals, and beverages. Surcharges apply for some excursions.
